Thank you, Julie Jensen.
I am so honored to be winning the David R. Collins Literary Achievement Award tonight, I didn’t prepare a speech – I will just have to wing it.
For me, writing has always been like dreaming, except you do it when you’re awake. Instead of being asleep – you put these dreams down on paper so other people can dream, too. Soon those dreams are felt all over the world.
The Midwest Writing Center must be a dream castle – and tonight here and now is dream kingdom. It is magical, oh so magical.
I have been writing for thirty-five years now. I wrote for ten years before I even received a payment and that was so special – to get paid for your dreams. I wrote my first professional newspaper article in 1983, my first magazine article in 1993 and my first book in 2003. And this year, seven new books – it is my year of dreams.
I’d like to thank some people in my life: Cindy Hulting (now my wife, Cindy McCarty), the love of my life, she has been my girlfriend for close to twenty years, we’ve written stories together and someday a book. Cindy has to share me with a mistress – my writing.

I’d like to thank my family, as well as the editors and agents with whom I’ve worked.
Lastly I’d like to thank my best friend and collaborator, Mark McLaughlin, for his friendship, for writing three books with me, and for being the webmaster of our websites.
This award means so much to me. Thank you, thank you and thank you!